The increase in the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is to a very great extent the cause of global warming CO2 of human origin is essentially emitted into the atmosphere by the combustion of fossil fuels in thermal power stations.
Thermal power stations, by combustion of fuels, make it possible to release heat that can be used to produce steam and optionally mechanical or electrical energy. The combustion flue gases release large amounts of CO2 into the atmosphere. In addition to CO2, other molecules are emitted into the atmosphere and are polluting, such as nitrogen oxides (NOx), sulfur oxides (SOx) and carbon monoxide (CO).
Reducing the carbon monoxide emissions is crucial considering in particular the limit thresholds imposed. Today, only an adaptation of the process conditions, in the sense of reducing the generation of carbon monoxide in the combustion chamber, makes it possible to reduce the carbon monoxide emissions. To do this, the excess of oxidant (O2 from the air in particular) could be increased so that the oxidation of the coal or natural gas is maximized, thus oxidizing the carbon monoxide to carbon dioxide. But this reduction is not sufficient.
The carbon monoxide emission thresholds reached with this technique still remain very high.